Reflection from the Classroom: A simple strategy for motivating students to write

Today when I was working with 8 to 9 years olds, I realized that a simple variation of your lesson plan could go a long way in keeping the interest and motivation high of your children/students.

I was planning on giving a topic for an essay to ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) students. These students have not mastered English as a language and often struggle and shut themselves up from writing assignments. I started out by saying let’s come up with a topic that you want to write about. There were several suggestions. Then I realized that everyone had her/his own interest and choosing one topic was not going to make everyone happy. So I let them all choose their own topic. It was such a delight to see them entirely engaged and motivated- each student was doing her/his best!

I am not saying that children should be allowed to pick their own topic every time but I think we can balance it out. It will go a long way in maintaining their interest in writing. When the children are engaged they pick up skills much faster.